


The Bitter End

by CarlaWritesStories



Category: Life Is Strange
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-11-03 19:58:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17884211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CarlaWritesStories/pseuds/CarlaWritesStories
Summary: This story is after Bay end. I’ve always wondered about what would have happened after Nathan got arrested and even though we have an idea, I wanted to write about it.The story will be about Nathan’s relationship with Mark since the beginning and no, it’s not a romantic one.Nathan does have feelings for Mark but don’t consider this a “love” story hahaha.Also, my knowledge of laws in America is very limited so ignore anything that wouldn’t actually happen in real life.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story is after Bay end. I’ve always wondered about what would have happened after Nathan got arrested and even though we have an idea, I wanted to write about it.  
> The story will be about Nathan’s relationship with Mark since the beginning and no, it’s not a romantic one.  
> Nathan does have feelings for Mark but don’t consider this a “love” story hahaha.  
> Also, my knowledge of laws in America is very limited so ignore anything that wouldn’t actually happen in real life.

ARCADIA BAY, 2013

Numb.  
That’s how Nathan felt, even though he wouldn’t choose the word “feel” to describe his state because, how can you feel nothing?  
It was always like that when he took his medicine and that was the reason why he usually mixed them with other drugs. Before, he hated not feeling and he would rather feel rage and pain than nothing at all.  
But now he was forced to take them, there was always a pair of eyes making sure he would swallow the pills and to be honest, in his current state he actually preferred to just be numb like that.  
Nathan was lying in his bed, looking at the ceiling above him for the past few hours.  
He couldn’t stop thinking about Chloe and Rachel and all the things he had done and the consequences of it all.  
His father had made arrangements for him to stay in a mental hospital initially, but he knew that sooner or later the police would come for him. There was a limit to what his dad’s power and money could get and Nathan was pretty sure he had reached the limit.  
The boy heard steps approaching and since he had already taken his pills that morning, he was now sure that after three days, the day had come when he would have to tell everything he knew. That should scary him but…that numbness.  
The steps stopped by his door and Nathan didn’t move, waiting and wishing that the person would just go away, but they didn’t and the boy finally heard a woman talk to him.

“Nathan Prescott?”

Nathan didn’t reply as he didn’t feel like it but he knew sooner or later he would have to start talking, so he just sat up on his bed, looking at the tall woman in front of him.

“How are you feeling?” She asked, smiling at him

“As shitty as always” He replied and ran his fingers through his hair

“Sorry to hear that” The woman took a few steps closer and pulled a chair “Mind if I sit here?”

Nathan shook his head and watched her. He was trying to figure her out and wondered whether she would play the good cop or bad cop card.

“My name is Karen Jones and I’m a detective” She talked slowly, her voice soothing in a way “I’m here to help you, Nathan…is that ok with you?”

“Yes” He nodded. She would play the good cop card then.

“Good” She smiled “I understand you don’t want a lawyer, is that so?”

“Yes, I don’t need one”

“I’m glad you’re willing to talk to me so we can figure out what happened between you and Chloe”

The detective looked at him with sad eyes for the first time and that made Nathan feel really bad again and he was okay with feeling something now, that meant he still hated himself for what he did.

“How are they treating you here?” 

“Well enough” Nathan looked down “They act like I’m crazy”

“And what do you think of that?”

“I don’t know” he shrugged “I suppose I am. I’ve been taking meds for a while now…well, more like avoiding them for a while now”

“You didn’t usually take them?”

“Rarely…only when my mother made sure I did”

“And how do you feel when you take them?”

“I don’t really feel anything…I don’t like it”

The detective placed a little recording device on the table close to his bed and Nathan looked up at her again.

“I have to record our conversation if that’s ok with you” she said

“It’s okay” Nathan said and looked down at his feet again.

“So usually, how did you deal with your problems since you didn’t take your medicine?”

“I did drugs” He simply said “They gave me energy to get through the day. At first I took them because of the way my meds made me feel but then I continued to take them just because the feeling was good”

“And that happened every week?”

“Yes” He nodded “It was very rare that I’d go to school without at least smoking something”

Nathan heard the rustling of her clothes as she changed her position on the chair and that made him look at her again.

“And that day, Nathan…when you talked to Chloe” She started carefully “Had you used anything?”

“Yes” he nodded “I smoked and took about…three different pills I guess”

“And why did Chloe want to talk to you? Why did you meet her there?” 

“She…she wanted money from me, she had been pressuring me for money for days”

“Did you owe her money?” the detective asked, leaning closer again

“I didn’t but,” Nathan hesitated a little “She was blackmailing me and that was why I took the gun that day, I wanted to scare her off”

“Why, Nathan? What did she know about you?”

The boy knew now he had to start telling everything and that made him a bit anxious, the effect of his medicine probably already wearing off.  
He placed his hands on his face, his head going one hundred miles per hour. All the memories came back to him at once, things he was trying to forget and things he was ashamed of. He remembered the dark room, the girls, Rachel and the junkyard.  
He thought of Mark and how angry he would be at Nathan for telling the truth, and he thought of how his feelings for the man made it so hard for the boy to tell all that he knew.

“Nathan?”

He faced the detective again, his heart beating so fast his hands were shaking. Nathan knew it was time and without thinking much about it again, the boy started to talk.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even though I love photography I don’t know a lot about cameras so forgive me for any mistake.

Arcadia Bay, 2009

“Nathan!”

The boy was brought back from his thoughts and looked up at his dad, he could see his reflexion in the rear-view mirror of the car.

“Yes?” Nathan asked

“Were you listening to me?”

Nathan shook his head and Sean seemed even more annoyed now.  
The boy knew his father wasn’t happy about the meeting they had just had with Nathan’s psychiatrist and she had added even more medicine to his already long list.  
Nathan didn’t understand why his dad would be angry, it wasn’t like the boy had chosen to be the way he was, he had no control over how he felt.

“I said,” Sean talked again “I need to stop by the cafe before going back home, can you act normal at least for a few minutes? I don’t want you embarrassing me in front of my friend”

“Okay, dad” Nathan simply said, looking down at his ipod again.

Nathan was sad that he still cared about the things his father said to him. Things like that hurt him and he wished they didn’t.  
He thought he should be used to the verbal abuse after so many years but he guessed people never get used to being treated like shit by their parents.  
After what felt like a few minutes, Sean parked the car and Nathan got out of it, putting his ipod back into the pocket of his blue jacket.  
The boy looked up and saw the big letters above the shop that said “Bean Hip Cafe”. He knew about the place but he found it weird that his dad would be there, Sean Prescott didn’t fit the profile of the people who frequented the place.  
The boy followed his dad and before they walked inside, Sean turned to face his son.

“Behave!”

Nathan nodded and then walked into the cafe Sean, he looked around and got instantly curious, as the walls were mostly covered with black and white photos.  
The boy approached the nearby wall and looked at the bigger picture there; a woman posing but you could only see her silhouette, just the light hitting her beautiful body.  
Nathan walked slowly and looked at the other picture, a man’s face looking right into the camera, his face serious and his wrinkles accentuated by the lighting and the shadows.  
The boy had never been so captivated by something in his life and he found himself carefully examining every single picture displayed on those walls.  
It was like he saw the world; all black and white. He didn’t understand how that was possible, to capture a feeling in a photograph.

“Enjoying the exhibition?”

Nathan turned to see who was talking to him and he saw a very tall man looking down a him with a small smile on his face, almost a smirk.

“You’re Nathan, right?” he continued “You father went to the restroom, I thought I should come and introduce myself. I’m Mark Jefferson, it’s nice to meet you”

The man extended his arm and Nathan nervously shook his hand, feeling suddenly very shy and trying hard not to mess things up as his dad had instructed him.

“It’s nice to meet you too”

“So,” Mark stopped by Nathan’s side “Enjoying my photos?”

“A-are these yours?” Nathan eyes were wide now “You took them?”

“I did,” the man smiled again “Do you like them?”

“Yes! I really like them” he nodded

“I can see that, it’s been a while since I saw someone look at my art like that”

Nathan was even more nervous now and that wasn’t a very common feeling to him. He was usually either very sad or very happy, mostly angry and obviously afraid, but never nervous around people.

“Y-you use a film camera?” Nathan stuttered a little again and he hated it.

“Most of the time, sometimes I resort to digital ones” Mark said “Come here, let me show you something”

Nathan followed the man and he stopped in front of the picture of the woman, the first one Nathan had seen.

“This one I took with a film camera,” the man talked slowly “I could get a good quality picture this size with a digital camera, but I chose the film one because it looks even better than the digital one with less work”

“You do this for a living?” Nathan asked

“Yes I do…I also teach Photography” Mark placed his hand on the boy’s shoulder “Why? Considering it, Nathan?”

Before Nathan could reply, Sean came back from the restrooms and interrupted them.

“Considering what, Nathan?” Sean asked

“Photography” Mark answered for the boy “He seems to really like my photos”

“Have we finally found something you like? That’s a first” Sean chuckled.

Nathan just closed up again, that was how he acted around his father and he always thought it was better this way. If he didn’t say anything he wouldn’t mess things up and be disciplined by Sean in front of others.  
Mark was watching and Nathan saw it, was he realizing how bad his relationship with his dad was? Was he feeling sorry? Nathan didn’t want pity.

“Nathan,” Mark spoke again “If your father allows me to, I’d like to send you one of my old film cameras. Would you like that?”

The boy’s heart was now beating fast, he hadn’t felt this excited about something in ages and he looked at his dad, hoping he would say yes.

“Yes, I would like that” Nathan said

“Alright, that would be good for him I guess. He spends the whole day stuck in his bedroom listening to music”

“Good then,” Mark smiled broadly at Nathan “As soon as I get back to Chicago, I’ll send you the camera”

“Great” Sean said “We have to go now. It was nice to see you again Jefferson”

“Same, Sean” Mark shook Sean’s hand and looked at Nathan once again “And it was a pleasure to finally meet you, Nathan”

Nathan shook his hand and gave the man a small smile, he didn’t know it back then but that was just the beginning of his end.


End file.
